Locked Up
by blackandwhiteisgrey
Summary: The girl sees her mother in reflections to find that she wasn't there. The other has a constant death-wish. And the boy has murderous urges. In the outside world, they are alone and misunderstood. Here, they are forced to walk the same halls and make interactions with each other to, hopefully, settle their unbalanced natures. Full description and warnings inside.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer- **I, in no way, own Avatar: the Last Airbender and its trademarks, etc. This work is merely for entertainment purposes only and not for profit. Names and characters not part of cannon that reflect actual people are accidental and coincidental.

This fanfiction is the result of low points in life, inspiration from being an inpatient at a behavioral health hospital (aka the "loony bin"), times of desperation, and to counteract the horrid story compilation "Worst Fan Fictions Ever" that I created. So, expect a lot of angsty strangeness.

Please leave me a review saying what you like, what you don't like, what I should fix, writing advice, or just to comment. Just knowing that I have an audience gives me a reason to update periodically. *hint* *hint* And trust me, I will take any advice you may give me.

Also, in case any of you are up to the challenge, this story needs a beta reader. PM me to find out what my qualifications are, since I am quite a nit-picky person.

Full description and warnings:

The girl sees her mother in reflections to find that she wasn't there. The other has a constant deathwish. And the boy has murderous urges. In the outside world, they are alone and misunderstood. Here, they are forced to walk the same halls and make interactions with each other to, hopefully, settle their unbalanced natures. They must first accept the horrible truths in their lives, in order to begin the process toward healing. WARNING: deliberate self-harm, suicidal thoughts/actions, homicidal thoughts/actions, destructive behaviors, sexual and physical abuse

I, in no way, condone the behaviors in the warnings.

I dedicate this story to my sister, my friends, and those who have either directly or indirectly helped me through the good times and dark times in my life.

* * *

_I ache for the day of my release. This place was in no part of my plan. In fact, this place was and is still to be avoided. I can't believe I was stupid enough to be discovered. It's only been one day, but it has felt like an eternity. The others are okay, once you look past their obvious issues. The problem is that I'm such a severe case that they just avoid me. It's alright actually. I was a lone wolf out there, why should this place be any different? The exception to that would be Cheng. But with a guy like that, it's to be expected. The problem is that he has been here longer, so companionship is hard to come by; since he's also considered a severe case._

_I know it's selfish, but I wish that there would be more severe cases. If not for companionship, then for the purpose of knowing that I'm not the only one like this. But I guess that is expected, too, since those who are like Cheng and I are considered "insane." Insanity isn't very common, apparently. But I'm not insane. I need to get out of here. I know I would be leaving Cheng all alone, but there are things I need to-_

"We have a new arrival coming this afternoon," Cheng said to me with a toothy grin. He turned his head down to what I was writing. He leaned forward for a closer look. "Can I see what-"

"No!" I snapped immediately. I swiped the paper away from his line of sight and pushed him more upright in his chair. With a quick motion, I ignited the paper and pushed the remaining ashes on the floor. One of the nurses shook her head disapprovingly and told me that firebending wasn't allowed. "Sorry. That won't happen again." This one rolled her eyes and said that if I did, it would be the isolation room for me. I nodded politely at her, for you don't want to cross the nurses if you want to get out faster.

"That was really smooth there, Lixue," Cheng said, laughing. "A few more things like that and you'll be labeled as 'red status'. Trust me, it's not fun."

"I'm new here. Give me a break. That was just a habit and I won't have a problem with it as long as you don't try to read anything over my shoulder unless I give you permission." I glanced around the room to see that the others have obviously seen the exchange between the nurse and I. "Anyways, you said something about a new arrival?"

"Yeah, I heard she's a heck of a case. She's from the capital. Probably someone of high social status, considering that the doctors and nurses are getting busy with straightening up the hospital and making sure the patients don't do anything insane. Which is kinda hard to do, since this is an insane asylum," Cheng said with a mock introspective look on his face. "Come to think of it, you never told me what crazy thing happened that landed you here. You don't seems to be the crazy type."

"That's because _I'm not crazy_," I responded, emphasizing my words slowly.

"And yet, you're here. Come on, I know it's all a front so you can get out of here faster. It's not gonna work since whatever happened categorized you under 'hopelessly insane'. I did the same thing, and it's been three years. You're not getting out anytime soon."

"Fine then. I'm insane. Happy now?"

"No, it's sad to think that someone like you would be locked up like this. Unless you're like me and it's just for the best. If I tell you why I'm here, would you tell me why you're here?"

I considered his offer carefully. Since I had nothing to lose, I nodded and said, "Fair enough."

"Well, you know that people are in here for three reasons, right?" I nodded for him to go on. "Some are in here because they can't take care of themselves and have no one to help them, some are a danger to others, and the rest are a danger to themselves. I guess you would say that I'm a danger to others." He scooted his chair closer to mine and lowered his voice a few levels. "The first thing I think of when I encounter other people is how to murder them. Whether it is with a weapon, my bare hands, or my surroundings; I consider all options."

I fidgeted in my seat a little after learning this about him. It's surprising to know that someone like Cheng really thinks that way about other people. Yet, I was not really afraid of him. I guess after the events that happened the last few days, I'm just too exhausted to fear anything.

"But don't worry," Cheng assured me. "I've never killed anyone. It just got so bad I checked myself into this place. It got to the point that animals would fall into my murderous grasp to help resist doing it to a human being. But after being here for a while, I don't have the urges as much as I used to. The thoughts come occasionally, but that's all." It was strange to see him in such a serious state, but at least he says he's getting better. After a brief pause, Cheng's face contorts back to its usual form as a cheery complexion. "So, what's your story?"

Come to think of it, I shouldn't have agreed to the terms without thinking things through more. Lixue and her impulsiveness will get her killed one day. Haha, funny. Irony is afoot in life right now, and it is not welcome here.

"Okay, so you said you're here because you're a danger to others?" I asked, rhetorically. Cheng nodded and gestured for me to continue. "I'll just say that I'm considered a danger to myself." I stood up from my chair and walked to the only door in this room.

"What, no specifics?" Cheng inquired after me.

"It's too soon for that," I replied. I really needed to be alone before the uncomfortableness got to me. I told the nurse by the doorway that I would be heading back to my quarters. She followed closely behind me after she got another nurse to take her spot by the door.

As I reached my room, the nurse stood back against the wall on the other side of the hallway. She brought out a scroll with my name labeled on it and scribbled something on it. I rolled my eyes at the thoroughness of the procedures here and entered my room, slamming the door behind me. Lets see what she'll write about that.

I collapsed on my cot, shutting my eyes as tightly as I could. I will not give in. Not in a place like this. I'm not insane. I'm just tired. I just want to get out of here!

I felt as if I wanted to scream and burn this whole establishment to the ground. I didn't care if I couldn't get out. I doubted that I would even let myself escape. But there's just too many people here. I guess if I just controlled it enough to just burn down the adolescent ward; everyone here was just too into cliques. Just like at the academy. That fact alone irked me to no end. And then came the problem about what I would do about Cheng... Should I let him flee? Or do I burn him to ashes along with me to protect the general population?

Or I should just leave the plan to burn the ward alone. Much more logical, if I didn't say so myself.

I jumped off of my cot that resulted in a loud stomp on the ground that reverberated around the building. A nurse knocked on my door to remind me to keep the noise to a minimum because the other teenagers in the adolescent ward below might get set off and cause even more commotion to set the adults below them to get set off also, whatever "get set off" meant in a place like this. I apologized and made sure my steps weren't as loud as that one. I realized that the adolescent ward was on the third floor... Which meant that my room was-

I eagerly glanced out the only window in my room. It was a small one and it had the view of the pathway to the front of the complex. Looking down, I gauged that it was about forty feet to the ground. Forty feet, if all the floors in this place were about ten feet tall like this one. Adult ward then adult rooms, then comes the adolescent ward and on the top came the adolescent rooms. An architectural design made in heaven, in my point of view. And the perfect escape from this place.

I gripped the metal bars to my window and began the steady process of melting and reshaping them, making sure not to do it too quickly or the glass behind them would shatter from stress by the rapid change in fluctuating temperature. Unnecessary noises apparently are taken quick note of in a place like this. The heat from the bars started to heat up the air surrounding them, which meant that the room started getting warm and that I should finish soon before the other firebending doctors and nurses notice that unnatural temperature changes were isolated into one room. In other words, they would notice that I'm firebending when I'm not allowed to.

As soon as I pulled the bars far enough apart to fit both of my shoulders in, I thought about my tactic on carrying out my plan. If I angled my body this way... no... Ah, that's a better trajectory. Now, for leverage.

I pulled my cot near the window and stood on it. I had only a few moments before the personnel heard the broken glass, so I needed to be quick and do this right the first time. Before it came back for me...

I kicked the glass as hard as I could and propelled myself through the small opening, not caring if the remaining shards tugged at my clothes and skin, and attempted a headfirst dive into the ground below to freedom.

* * *

I'm not a failure! He's the failure! I'm supposed to be fire lord! I'm the one strong enough to be fire lord, not him! So what if mother loved him only? She thought I was a monster, and look where that got her! And she had the nerve to finally say that she "loved" me right before my coronation? It's either she finally realized that I'm the one that deserves her love or that she came to taunt me just so he can take the throne from me. That's it, she was in on his plan the whole time! She's just trying to get into my head, to prevent me from ever taking my rightful place on the throne! And now that he's telling me that she was never there just for an excuse to lock me up like Father.

With disgust and frustration, I pulled at the bindings at my wrists and ankles. I found it to be horrible and unusual punishment for them to be doing this, for that stupid Avatar took away my bending and I can't do anything to anyone. If he took away my bending, why not take Zuzu's away as well? I'm the better bender. He's just a poor excuse for one. I'm the prodigy! I deserve every right to keep my bending! I struggled in my seat, trying to find a way to untie my bindings.

"Untie me! I'm your princess! This is treason of the worst kind! You are to be put in a prison for this kind of treatment to royalty!" I spat at the palace servant pushing my wheelchair.

"I'm sorry, princess, but you must remain restrained. We must prevent any further harm to befall upon the others by your hand," the maid replied. I saw that there's fear in her eyes, and she was attempting to hide it. She wasn't there when I lashed out, but I'd have bet that she saw the broken leg and nose of that servant.

"He deserved it anyways. He accused one of the royal family to be insane. ME? INSANE?! He's the one who lost his mind for saying that in my face."

The maid obviously ignored me, which annoyed me to no end, and said, "Fire Lord Zuko reluctantly is placing you in a facility for you to take a break from recent events. He will be accompanying you to see if the place fulfills his expectations."

She maneuvered the chair to one of the docking planks on the boat I have just exited. I saw the disgrace of a Fire Lord walk down off the boat. Anger and fury rose up in my chest.

"How is she?" Zuko asked the maid. Of course, you think I'm crazy. Of course, you're not going to ask me that question. Because you think I'm crazy!

"She's livid, but she's more calm compared to the incident with Chao," the maid replied. He nodded and looked off into the distance. Seeing that he was distracted, I propelled myself at him by my bound legs. I miscalculated my force and ended up rolling off the other end of the dock. I landed into the water, desperately trying to make my way up to the surface again.

My bound limbs were useless to save me from drowning. I felt the displacement of water as someone dove in to retrieve me, just as I was struggling to hold my breath longer. The saltwater stung in my eyes as I tried to see what else was going on. My rescuer finally brought me back to the surface and onto the dock, both of us coughing and struggling to get air back into our lungs. As I blinked back the last of the salty sting in my eyes, I realized that the maid was the one who dove in to save me.

How heartless of a man he is! He didn't even care to save his own little sister from drowning! No, he'd leave a job like that to a worthless servant girl. Rage filled itself in my being at this realization. And just like that, as if nothing happened, he walked off the dock while I was wheeled by my rescuer to follow him.

We arrived at the facility at about three. I looked around at the place I was doomed to stay for the rest of my life, if it were to go his way. The lobby was horridly decorated with peasant stock-paintings and vases of painted metal with dull, white flowers in them. The front desk had stacks of scrolls and papers too sterilely arranged. The lobby was void of people except for the nurse at the desk, me, Zuko, and his entourage.

"Welcome to Tao Memorial Hospital, Fire Lord Zuko," the nurse said, bowing deeply. She turned to me and bowed her head as well. "And we welcome you, too, Princess Azula."

Zuko just nodded lightly, looking around at his surroundings. His gaze fell upon the nurse once again and said, "You will treat her well here?" The nurse nodded.

"Our facility is very different compared to the conceptions the general public have on hospitals such as these. We do not want to create an atmosphere that will interfere with the progress towards rehabilitation to become, once again, part of society. So, we will not make them do anything that they are not willing to do. But it is encouraged for them to engage and learn in the activities that will benefit their treatment."

"Will she stay here long?"

"It's all up to her."

"I do not want to be here!" I articulated with a hint of defiance.

"Unfortunately, you can only be released if the doctors deem you ready. But it's up to you to show to them that you are ready to leave." The nurse motioned for us to follow her. She lead us to a completely empty room, save for a torch on one wall, and motioned for everyone else to exit. She knelt in front of me at eye level and said, "I'm going to remove the restraints. If you cooperate with me, this process will go faster and you will start out with more privileges that the other patients don't usually start out with. If you don't, you start out with the same privileges that everyone else gets and we'll both have a bad day today."

I sensed a hint of a threat in her words. I analyzed her closely to see who would have the advantage. Her arms and legs had muscles in them. Her stance was steady and balanced. And considering the way that the torch behind her moved to the rhythm of her breathing, she was a firebender as well. I nodded in agreement, as well as defeat.

"You are very observant, Princess Azula. You certainly don't fit the over-generalized conception that all mentally-imbalanced people are stupid. I don't believe the stereotype myself, but I've dealt with many cases that, unfortunately, fit that description." She smiled at me and untied my restrains. "It might either be a good or bad thing to you, but I have been assigned to be the nurse to have watch over you. So, I will introduce myself, firstly. My name is Li Ming." She stood up from her kneeling position. "This might be quite embarrassing and degrading, but this is for the safety of the other patients and yourself."

She handed me a towel and said, "I'm going to have to ask you to remove all of your clothing and hand them to me. You may use that towel to cover yourself as I search for anything that you might have that could potentially be used against others or yourself." I stood there, not quite believing what she requested of me. "I will turn around while you do so. It is required of me to stay in the same room as you are in this stage of the process, since there is a torch on the wall." She turned her back towards me and clasped her palms over her eyes, to emphasize the meaning that she will not look.

"I assure you that I have no weapons on my person. My brother saw to it," I reasoned with her.

"It doesn't have to be weapons. Just a simple object such as string is not allowed in this facility."

"But what about the things a patient isn't willing to do?"

"I was referring to aspects of treatment. Not the rules that all must abide by, including me," she stated, still with her back towards me. I reluctantly shedded my clothes and deftly wrapped the towel around my torso. I picked up my clothes and tapped her on the shoulder to indicate that I was done. She turned around, looked at the clothes in my hand and simply said, "All articles of clothing, madam." She turned around once again. I sighed, annoyed at such thoroughness, and removed the rest of my clothing. I wrapped the towel even closer to me, feeling even more degraded than I was the moment I was tied up back at the palace. I tapped her shoulder and handed the pile to her. She smiled, and searched through my clothing. The only thing that she removed was the sash from my robe.

"This robe without its sash wouldn't suffice for covering yourself. So I will give you a hospital gown in its place. I will give them to you when I have you situated in a room," she said as she handed back my clothes, turned around once more, and I donned my clothing. I made sure to keep the robe closed by hand. The nurse beckoned me to follow after I finished.

Outside of the room, Zuko and the others had surprised looks on their faces. I bet you were expecting a fight between me and this lady, Zuzu. Well, you were wrong about me again. I never underestimate my opponents.

"This is where you say your goodbyes for now, assuming that you will come to visit her," Li Ming said to Zuko. He nodded, looked at me sadly, and exited the hospital. His company followed closely behind him. The maid who saved me looked back, hesitated, and bowed, then caught up with the rest of the group. She's pathetic.

"Now, are you ready to meet the others?" Li Ming asked me. She had a brush in her hand and a scroll in the other with my name on it. She wrote down a few things and rolled it back up. "I'm just writing down that you get special privileges. The other nurses were debating on how you would react and who would be the best one for you to be assigned to. I guess we're all surprised that you decided to cooperate." She smiled at me. "Perhaps you're not the hopeless case that many have come to believe."

I only nodded slightly to show that I was still listening. She then lead me to a door that opened to an outdoor plaza with a fountain in the center. As we walked through the plaza, we passed by a pond with turtle-ducks swimming around. The sight of them brought a sense of revulsion, since I usually associate them with Zuko and his mother. The facility had a square-within-a-square layout, with the plaza as the inside square. On the side directly opposite the lobby was a building much taller than the rest. I assumed that this was where the rooms were. As we got nearer to this building, Li Ming started prattling off the rules. No fighting, no bending- not like that was possible on my part, no harsh words, etc. Doing so will end up in punishments that range from privileges taken to temporary confinement, depending on the severity. Also, doing so will end up with a closer watch.

In the middle of her obviously rehearsed speech, I heard glass shattering from above. To the right of both Li Ming and I, glass shards clinked and scattered about the ground. I looked up to see a person diving head-first into the ground.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer-** I, in no way, own Avatar: the Last Airbender and its trademarks, etc. This work is merely for entertainment purposes only and not for profit. Names and characters not part of cannon that reflect actual people are accidental and coincidental.

I have to say that due to the lack of response to the first chapter, as well as the current level of motivation I have for this, I have officially put this story on hiatus. I mean, I would like to continue, but originally I started this out as a means for expression. Now that I don't have the need for the means, this is most likely going to go to the last of my priority list of writing.

Also, to make notice of, I have increased the rating to M, because of what happened in the last chapter and my paranoia tends to get the best of me. My incoherent mind typing this at the dead of night missed that little detail.

But instead of leaving those of you reading with nothing and little notice of why I haven't updated in a while, I've decided to publish what I had of chapter 2 for the longest time.

* * *

I didn't really remember what happened after I jumped, other than waking up with these bandages around my neck and shoulders. Which meant that I failed, again. And I was definitely feeling the repercussions of my actions, again.

I mentally kicked myself for being so stupid for not remembering that the ground was a slope, not flat. Which explained why I survived. Instead of the top of my head impacting the ground first, my chin most likely took the brunt of it. And it was my luck, again, my neck broke in areas that wouldn't kill me.

I heard movement on my right and awkwardly turned to see Cheng sitting on a chair against the wall. His face had it's usual smile, but in his eyes were a weariness that only testified his vigilance of my unconscious body until I woke up.

"Hey. I heard that you fell," Cheng said, attempting sarcasm.

"Yeah," I replied. "I guess I did." Cheng closed his eyes, leaned back in his chair, and tilted his face toward the ceiling. His face contorted to a grimace, unnatural and out of place for him. He exhaled all the remaining air from his lungs, inhaled deeply, and lightly banged his head on the wall twice.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why would you do that? Was it something I said?"

"Why are you so concerned? You barely know me."

"I- Just answer the question, please." I looked at the wall opposite of him, avoiding eye contact. Too weary to use previous tactics that I used in the past (amnesia, the silent treatment, etc.), I went with the blunt truth.

I turned to look at him, just not his eyes. I can't stand looking anyone in the eyes right now. Eyes just tell too much about a person, and some of those things I just wasn't ready to handle. I failed to die, again, remember?

"I just want to die. That's all. _Why_ I want to die... I'm not so sure. There's many reasons."

"It's so weird." He looked past me, eyes in the direction of the bed-post near my head. Yet not seeing the bed-post at all. "I've seen quite a few cases in here during my extended stay. But out of all of them, I just can't quite understand yours."

"What do you mean?" I turned my face ninety degrees toward the ceiling, hoping to ease the pressure from my aching jaw.

"We both have death obsessions, right? I should be able to understand that, at least. It's so similar, yet so different."

"I'm not death-obsessed." Cheng shrugged his left shoulder and gave a half-smirk. A nurse, who I realized was standing there during the whole conversation, motioned for Cheng to leave. He nodded and gave me a smile.

"Hey, good news!" he beamed, walking towards the door. "You're under suicide watch while you recover and for about a week after that. Oh, and you've got a new roommate!" He disappeared out the doorway while the nurse took the seat that Cheng had previously occupied.

Oh. Yay. A roommate.

* * *

This was definitely going to be longer. I apologize. But because of the reasons stated above, it isn't. Oh well, maybe I'll continue this in the future. Plus, I believe it was a mistake to put original characters in here.

Anyways, hope you've enjoyed it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer-** I do not own the rights to Avatar: the Last Airbender

**Author's note:**

Well, I guess this means that this isn't on hiatus anymore. Most likely due to the wonderful reviews of kittycook and MusicBeyondHorizons giving me motivation to not let this developing story to die just yet. Thank you guys so much!

Since I will be starting college soon, I have to admit that publishing will come much more far and in-between. But that doesn't mean that I won't publish.

Yet, life would have it differently. Since I have stated before, I have had to stay at one of those lovely places called the "asylum". And the underlying reason for my stay likes to poke it's little ugly head and say, "Hey, hope you didn't forget about me! I got you a present. We're going to take a nice long trip down memory lane, and make sure you bring your winter coat and an umbrella! And I hope you don't mind me latching onto you for a while. I just love clinging onto you. I'm never leaving again!" And that little leech doesn't like for me to publish things.

Oh well, some of us aren't dealt good cards from life from time to time. Gonna have to make do with what you've got, right?

* * *

The girl impacted the ground near where I was. I rolled my eyes at this. The insane are just so hopelessly weak that they resort to such things.

The next moment, nurses and doctors swarmed out of the building, with a couple of the male staff members carrying a stretcher. The doctors were muttering amongst themselves, kneeling alongside the girl; while the nurses waited behind, with a few of them going off to carry out the doctors' orders. None of them seemed to have taken notice of Li Ming and I.

Li Ming glanced at the girl with worry in her eyes, then looked to me. She made a gesture, and we entered into the building without any words passed between us.

Li Ming motioned for me to sit on a sofa in what I gathered to be one of the meeting areas for the patients to gather.

"I apologize for what happened outside. I assure you that this is not a common occurrence, but it still happens from time to time. Unfortunately, this means that there aren't enough extra nurses to spare to help get you more situated, so I will have to do it myself. Which makes the process longer," Li Ming said to me, yet I felt that she was talking partly to herself as well. "This is the adult recreational room, and usually there are other patients here. Because of the emergency, all patients had to stay in their rooms." She pulled out her scroll and wrote a few notes down. "It looks like you won't be meeting your new roommate for a while, but I'll have you situated in your room immediately." She motioned for me to follow her.

We ascended a few flights of stairs and ended up in another recreational room. "And this is the adolescent recreational room. We have to keep the adolescents and the adults separate to prevent any issues with patients, since most of the children here have issues with adults," Li Ming stated, motioning for me to follow her again. She lead me to a window that opened to an office space. "This is the nurses' station. You come here if you ever need anything. Medication, toiletries, clothing, and other needs can be supplied through here. Though, there has to be a nurse on duty at the time."

Li Ming unlocked a door and walked into the nurses' station. "Under normal circumstances, you wouldn't be allowed here. But since there aren't other nurses to watch you out there, you need to stay with me while I get you clothes."

After she brought out some clothes for me, she lead me to a room numbered "114." There were nurses lined up against the walls in front of doors, some were leaning against open door-frames. Most of them looked in my direction, some bowed their heads at my passing. She motioned for me to enter the room first and said, "This will be where you will be staying while you are here. Make yourself at home." She stepped away from the door-frame. "If you need me, I will be outside."

After she closed the door to my room, I changed from my robe to the atrocious clothing that they have offered me. I went to the sliding-door of the closet to hang my robe- and found no hook nor hangar to hang it with. What's the point of a closet if you cannot store clothing properly? I huffed and rolled my eyes at the absurdity. Behind me was another door, and I assumed it was the bathroom. Peering into the room confirmed my suspicions, while the knob-less door added to my frustration. There's no way that a place like this can help crazy people from getting better; the very facility is designed to keep them insane!

I threw myself angrily onto one of the cots; whilst doing so made the cot hit against the wall with a loud _bang_. Immediately, Li Ming and another nurse rushed into the room. Having noticed that I wasn't really doing anything, the other nurse left. Can I ever be left alone in a place like this?

"My apologies, Princess Azula. The whole hospital is under watch while they have the situation under control. Please keep in mind that we're doing this for the safety of you and the other patients."

"Oh, so making your hospital so ill-designed is also for the sake of safety?!" I spat angrily at her. Upon the volume of my voice, the other nurse once again entered my room. I lowered my voice and calmed my demeanor. "I just find it idiotic that there is a closet that cannot store clothing." I threw the robe that was still in my grasp haphazardly onto the floor.

* * *

The pain in my neck got worse after the day after. Every movement in my neck elicited a groan of discomfort from me. The cuts and scrapes I got from the broken window also added to my pain. The nurse by my bedside looked at me with a straight face, emotionless and uncaring. Someone just get me out of here already!

"May I have a glass of water?" I asked the nurse, hoping that I would have a moment alone. To my disappointment, she called another nurse to grab me a glass of water. Or should I say a _metal cup_ of water. The it's-for-your-own-safety thing was getting on my nerves even more. The other nurse handed my nurse the cup and helped her help me to sit up. I struggled against them while saying that I was able to do it on my own, and they ignored my failure to comply. Though I'd have to admit that she way my nurse somewhat shoved the cup into my hand, while spilling a bit of the contents onto my lap, implied that she was also not enjoying this.

Hours passed after that without another word from me. The only time I spoke was when a doctor came in to check on my recovery progress.

"Any pain?" the doctor asked.

"Yes, obviously." He scribbled something onto his scroll that was much longer than a terse reply of 'yes.'

"Where?"

"My neck." Duh. I rolled my eyes toward the ceiling, inwardly wondering if he should be a patient here himself.

"Can you feel this?" He took the end of his brush and poked the bottom of my foot with it, a bit too quickly.

"Ouch! Of course!" I hissed at him. I immediately didn't like him. Then again, I don't like any of the staff that work here.

"Can you feel this?" He did the same motion to my right foot this time.

"If you poke me with that again, I am going to light it on fire." I am so fed up with this place. He nodded at this with that clinical manner that everyone here seemed to have, and he wrote something that I was pretty sure was going to come back to bite me in the future. But for now, I enjoyed the moment of expressing my frustration without nurses flocking around me.

After what seemed like hours of these kinds of tests, with much irritation from my part (and most likely amusement from the doctor's), he blotted excess ink on the scroll with a cloth and rolled it up.

"It seems that you only cracked one of your vertebrae and there was no damage to the spinal cord. You will need a few weeks to recover. And I'm sure that you are aware that you will be put under watch for the duration of that period. And one week after that." He motioned to my nurse, who left the room upon the movement. "You appear to be stable enough to meet your new roommate."

My nurse came back to the room and knocked on the door-frame. The doctor left the room while the nurse gestured for someone out of my line of sight to enter the room.

The girl who entered the room held her head up in a way that spoke of pride, yet pugnacious in effect. Her head was in my direction, but only her eyes looked at me; as if she we not only looking down at me literally, but figuratively as well.

Something about her stirred a feeling of fear and familiarity in me, but I didn't know why. It was as if she felt like she was my superior. She certainly didn't look to be stable; for her bangs were cut so slanted and uneven, and her gaze was almost paranoid. She, herself, was analyzing me; she most likely didn't like what she saw as well.

I had a feeling that this wasn't going to go well for either of us.

* * *

**A/N: **I'm pretty sure you guys can guess who's roommates with whom by now. And apparently chapter lengths will greatly vary...

Well, I have a feeling that I'm going to have a bit of trouble trying to keep characters generally in-character. Also, I edited a few grammar and spelling mistakes in the previous chapters. That's what happens when I don't really proof-read what I wrote. Hey, offering someone to help beta-edit this thing.

I'll try not to go into hiatus with this thing. I guess that wasn't much of a hiatus, but I still didn't really think I was going to continue it. Still kinda feel like that now, but at least I feel more compelled to write.

Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any copyrights to Avatar: the Last Airbender and any characters, settings, etc. that are affiliated with said work. Any names or characters not part of the work, but resemble those in real life are unintentional. In other words: please don't sue me!

Very, very sorry for not updating as often as I would like. This chapter is just very hard for me to write due to writer's block (which is also somewhat scary because it's so early in the plot for me to have this). I also apologize if the established characters have gone out-of-character. As well as the original established characters. To tell you guys the truth, Azula is one of the most difficult characters for me to pin down, and I don't really like to use the excuse of "Well, she's insane and we have no idea how she's supposed to act anymore" mainly due to the fact that it will make it too easy for me. Also, my mind has been uncooperative with writing lately. (Tsk, tsk. Excuses, excuses.)

Anyways, I would like to thank MusicBeyondHorizons for the wonderful review! Cookie for you!

* * *

Chapter 4

"Where'd you go, Cheng?" my roommate inquired as I entered our room. Liang had propped a pillow against the wall on the far side of the room. His back rested against it as he sat cross-legged on the floor. He eyed me with a harsh squint while poking the air in front of his face.

"I went to visit Lixue," I replied. "What are you doing? Trying to catch the little dragons that mess with your nose again?" Liang slowly relaxed his jabbing finger and grabbed the pillow that he was leaning on from behind him. He removed it with a swift motion and let himself fall against the wall with a soft _thud_. He then brought the pillow to his face and blew harshly at it.

"Um, no," Liang mumbled into the pillow. He removed the pillow from his face and threw it up in the air and watched it _plop_ against the floor with eyes of amazement. His mouth formed a small "o" shape and pointed to the pillow. "Wow! Did ya see that?"

I couldn't help but grin a little at his childish antics. It must be awesome to see the word in his eyes. I nodded in confirmation of his question and picked up his pillow while sitting down cross-legged in front of him. I handed his pillow back to him and said, "Then what were you doing?" He took the pillow back from me and hugged it tightly while resting his chin on top of it.

"Oh, I was just wondering if you could feel me poking your face from over here." He cocked his head to one side and closed one eye while the other glanced at the ceiling. He mumbled incoherently to himself and then shook his head. "You said you visited Lixue, right?"

"Yeah," I answered while standing myself up. I walked to my cot and laid myself down. I turned to my side to face him. "She's alright now."

"Um..."

"Hm?"

"Is she on... that watch thing now?" He stood up, still clutching the pillow with wrapped arms and chin, and sat on his cot. His eyes looked dangerously close to tearing up. "I hope she is. She's nice. I want her to feel better."

"She is, don't worry." Liang's eyes went back to it childlike wonder and he hugged his pillow tighter. "Did you hear about the new patient?" He nodded eagerly in reply. "Well, I heard that she and Lixue are going to be roommates."

"That's good. Lixue shouldn't be alone during her stay here. She needs more friends." I couldn't help but smile at his concern for Lixue. Despite his childlike mentality conflicting with his developing teenage body, he definitely has the capability of having the correct thought complexity. He just had a problem portraying it, is all.

"You should talk to her, then. Normally, you'd greet everyone here, but you've avoided her." Liang loosened his grip on his pillow and started rubbing his thumb over his elbow. He glanced down at the floor, then looked at me.

"She's got little dragons flying everywhere around her. They don't like me near her." Oh?

"Have you've seen them around anyone else before?"

"Yesh..." He curled his lips apart and brought a hand to his nose.

"Around who?"

"Me." He quickly released his grip on his nose and jerked his gaze to his shoulder.

"Do you know what that means?" He directed his attention towards me once again and nodded enthusiastically.

"Firebender."

I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed at this information. I was hoping that it would spark some secret that would reveal something about Lixue. But then again, Liang is in here. He never told me why, but he's in here, at the hospital. Though I'd have to admit that Liang being able to tell who was a firebender or not in such a way was quite useful.

"Do you see them around the nurses as well?"

"Yep. But their dragons aren't as mean to me. Their dragons like mine. Lixue's don't. I don't like to see the dragons fight."

Well, whatever that meant, it explained why Liang was avoiding Lixue.

"But today I saw this girl whose dragons had no wings. And I felt sad," Liang said, lying down on his cot. Placed the pillow on the head of the cot and rested his head on it. I felt one of my eyebrows raise at this, as well as my curiosity.

"When was this?"

"When you were gone. I heard footsteps and thought it was yours, so I peeked out the door. Then I saw the girl walk by."

"Do you think it's Lixue's new roommate?"

Liang rubbed at his bottom lip, picked at it, and shrugged.

* * *

That could've gone better.

Three things that I learned about my new roommate: she's insane, which is a given, considering this place; she and I are to be roommates; and her name is Azula, as in Princess Azula of the Fire Nation. Well, then again, the nurses have told me that. Maybe in not as many words, but that was my interpretation of the facts.

She and I just observed the other, saying nothing at all. I saw in her eyes that she didn't approve of what she saw, and I guess that she saw the same in my eyes. I'd have to say that the nurses in this place finally got some sense into them and let the little "visiting time" come to a close. I asked them who she was, then I had to stifle the whimper of fear that almost escaped upon learning of her identity. Before coming to this place, there were rumors that went around about the happenings between the new Fire Lord and his sister. And it turned out that those rumors were true.

Good going, Lixue. Not only did you start off on the wrong foot with your new roommate. You started off on the wrong foot with the _sibling _of the _Fire Lord_. Not to mention that the sibling is _Princess Azula. _I hoped the rumor that her firebending was taken away by the Avatar (which I really can't believe that he was able to do such a thing) was true, because the whole nation was aware of her bending prowess.

I shivered a bit under the covers, thinking about what people have said that she was capable of. Now that she's here, and most likely not in the most stable mind, I feared that I most likely signed my own death certificate.

I laughed a bit at that metaphor. Oh, irony.

If anything, I could use this time to plan my next escape from this place. I was obviously not going to dive out of my window again. Or even the window to this room, which I know is on the ground floor due to the shrubbery I could see outside from my point of view on this cot... Although an actual escape might be more plausible on this floor.

The new nurse assigned to watch over me sat on the chair nearby. Even from the dim light coming outside of the window, her eyes held something akin to pity. Or sadness.

I was pretty sure that such a thing is looked down upon in a place like this. The doctors and nurses weren't supposed to have any sympathy towards the patients, right? Maybe due to the lack of light, she thought that I wouldn't be able to see her expression.

The thought of the possibility of making her feel such negative emotion made me feel guilty.

See? Look what at what you do, Lixue! You make people feel bad for a person as selfish and pathetic as you. You need to get out of here. Now.

I turned my body towards the wall, away from the nurse. As I did so, my neck emitted sharp pangs that left throbs of pain moments after.

On second thought, I'll get out of here... As soon as the repercussions of my stupidity and failure are over.

* * *

Okay, okay, no more original characters. Ugh.

Sorry about the length of this chapter. But the plot warrants that I need to stop the chapter at this point. Now that this chapter is out of the way, now I can (hopefully) get out of the writer's block.

Nope, still can't get the end of this chapter right. Oh well.

Thank you very much for reading!


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